"We have to get the children to safety." SRG said. "They can't stay in this warzone. Each day represents another death. We lost 3 kids in the bombing raids last night. This has to stop." "What do we do?" ARG asked. "I can try fighting my way to the coast, but I don't think it will work. WHY DID THOSE DARN MESOPOTAMIANS HAVE TO MESS WITH OUR UTOPIA?" "Calm down." Chinsnau told ARG. "There is no need to yell." "Do you have any suggestions then?" SRG wondered. "Well yes I do." Chinsnau responded. "I'm the master of stealth, so I could make a way to hide you and your crew at the Azovu border." "'Your way'?" SRG wondered. "Are you not coming with us?" "I need to stay here to keep us hidden." Chinsnau said. The door into the meeting room flew open and ASAP rushed in. "Brazil just agreed to help us!" They called happily. "We now have the support of a major nation." "HECK YEAH!" ARG cried out. "We can finally get the children out through a port. That should be easier with help from the Brazilian navy." "Alright, where will we be picked up?" SRG asked ASAP. "We're working on that now." ASAP smiled. "We should soon be able to get help. The Brazilian government is trying to get help because the Mesopotamian government is violating the Seoul Convention." "Alright. Let's get working." SRG said. "The children will soon be safe." 2 weeks had passed and the plan was ready. SRG made his way down the underground passage to the childcare zone. He pushed the door open and looked around the room. There were beds stacked around the room, and the kids were all sitting on them, with a backpack in front of them. "Alright! Let's go, people." SRG spun around and headed back through the door he had entered from. SRG made his way down the hallway and pushed a door open. "Through here!" The children quickly walked through the doorway and into the dark tunnel. "One, two, three." SRG counted as the children passed him. "Sixty-two, sixty-three, and that's it." "WAIT!" A voice called from down the hall. The figure ran into view and SRG gasped. "CHAD! Is that you?" SRG ran over to his friend. "What are you doing here? Aren't you still injured from the last battle against the COGs?" CHAD smiled. "I just got admitted from the Citadel's hospital. I am now able to help against these backstabbing Mesopotamians." "Do you know the plan? We just commenced, and it would take precious time if I explained it to you." "Yep, ASAP filled me in as I made my way here. seems like a solid plan." "Alright, let's go. I'll lead the way and you stay in the back, to make sure we leave no-one behind." CHAD nodded his head and stood behind the last child in line. SRG quickly spun to follow him and jogged up the line, making sure everyone was accounted for. He took out a pen and wrote ‘65’ on his hand. 'Let's just hope luck goes our way. We will certainly need it.' He thought. They started down the dark passages and the light from the hallway faded to nothing. The only light left was that of their flashlights. The passages seemed to stretch endlessly in front of SRG, and the light of his flashlight faded in front of him after only a couple dozen meters. The first child behind him was talking happily with her friends about getting to safety but SRG was unsure. The journey ahead would be treacherous and there would likely be many deaths. They continued on until they reached a fork in the path. “Which way do we go, SRG?” The girl behind SRG asked. “If I remember correctly, we go lef–” SRG’s response was cut off by the tunnel shaking as a loud rumbling went over them. “What was that?” The girl dropped back fearfully. “That was just the road Miriam.” SRG calmed her. “We are walking under a major highway.” “Why are there old tunnels under here?” Miriam looked up at him. “They look older than you.” “Why thank you little one.” SRG smiled. SRG in fact did not look old. He appeared to be in his twenties, even though he was much older. “They were built in a time long passed. When our revolt went underground, we were just as surprised as you to find them. Now they are our home.” “Couldn’t we all use them to escape? Why is it just us?” “Well, you children are of course our future. We must not surrender on the surface or we will be hunted into extinction completely.” SRG explained. “Children don’t have to stay in the battle. Once we manage to escape, us non-combattants will also stop draining precious resources.” “Oh. They just want us out of the way. That’s reassuring.” “Once we get to Brazil, there will be no more worrying. Your parents only have to focus on fighting well enough to get back to you.” “YOU’RE GOING TO BRAZIL!” A young girl ran up to Miriam and jumped up. She patted Miriam on the head before landing. “GET DUNKED ON!”. SRG turned away from them again and continued down their path. It took ten hours of walking through the musty air, with two hours breaks included, for them to reach a dead end.
SRG stopped at the base of the stairs and called out to the line. “We’re stopping now. It’s time to rest.” The children collapsed to the ground in exhaustion and SRG waited patiently for CHAD to make his way forward. When he finally arrived, SRG looked expectantly at him. “We still have 63 children.” CHAD reassured him. “None have wandered off.” “I’ll go and make sure our safe house hasn’t been compromised. I’ll make sure it’s safe and come back with the rest of our supplies. The buses should arrive tomorrow morning.” “Ok. I’ll gather everyone up in a group here. Now go, we don’t have much time to wait. Sleeping is necessary if we want the kids to get through this.” SRG turned around and hurriedly opened a door that had seemed invisible. He closed it behind himself and quietly walked up the stairs. When he reached the top, his head narrowly missed the wooden trapdoor above him and he ducked down slightly. His hand pulled out a key and unlocked the hatch. SRG pushed up and the hay blocking his view from the hatch slid away. He peered out and saw nothing in any direction. He pushed it open further and exited before closing it behind himself. He recovered the hatch and pulled out his weapon. He silently made his way to the barn door and looked out the crack. There was nothing in any direction, so he opened the side door, grabbed a hoe and walked purposefully toward the nearby house. He reached it and entered using his copy of the key. He bumped the doorbell on his way in, to signal his entry to the homeowner. He strutted over to the bathroom and entered, closing the door behind him. A minute later a hand knocked on the door and a voice said softly to him. “You’ve arrived at last. Let’s get ready to go.” End Part 1
